Her heart hammered at the expression on his face. He looked as if he could literally consume her. She’d known he was highly sexual from the first time she’d seen him in person, but now she wondered if she would be able to…Pushing the thought from her mind again, she nodded and took a long drink of champagne, then another. She suspected, however, that she would need to consume the entire bottle to bring her anxiousness under control.
Leo sat on the bed and lifted his hand to cup her cheek. “There’s no need to be nervous.”
“I’m not,” she said. “Really.”
His lips lifted in a half grin. “You just need something else to think about,” he said and lowered his mouth to hers. His lips were sensually rich and expressive. He rubbed his mouth from side to side, slipping his tongue inside when she took a half breath.
“You taste delicious,” he murmured against her mouth. “And I plan on tasting every inch of you.”
The vibration of his mouth on hers did things to her. She felt warmer, her face felt hot and her skin seemed ultrasensitive, hyperaware of his potent masculinity. He continued to kiss her, his caresses growing more aggressive. A shocking excitement flooded her.
How had that happened, she wondered. She’d been dreading this. She had. She felt his hand threading through the back of her hair, tilting her head to give him better access to her mouth. He pulled her against him and she instinctively clung to his strong shoulder, her champagne glass tilting precariously.
Leo pulled it from her hand, took a sip and then swore. Fire flickered in his eyes. “You’re amazing…” He inhaled deeply, his nostrils flaring. He lifted the glass to her lips and she took a sip.
Setting the glass on the bedside table, he turned back to her and without a second of preparation, he pulled her shirt over her head. Three seconds later, he slid his arms behind her and unfastened her bra. Her br**sts sprang free and he filled his hands with them. The sight and sensation of his tanned skin against her pale br**sts was so sensual she had to close her eyes.
There was something primitive and carnal between her and Leo. She’d glimpsed flickers of it before and dismissed it as overworked imagination or hypersensitivity. He pulled off his shirt and his skin, molding to his muscles, glistened in the candlelight.
His strength, inside and out, called to her. She had been forced to be strong so long. What a temptation to be able to lean on someone else. And she suspected he was strong enough. She gave into the lure and slid her hands over his shoulders and biceps. “Good Lord, how did you get such an amazing body? Do you work out all the time?”
His teeth flashed. “No, but I have George to keep me in shape. I’m glad you appreciate it, since he beats the crap out of me.”
He slid his finger over her bicep. “You do some working out yourself,” he murmured.
She shivered again and his gaze slid to her br**sts. “Gotta keep up my delusion of having control over my life,” she said.
His hands covered her br**sts and she forgot what else she was going to say. He slid one of his hands down to her jeans and unfastened the top button. The sound of her zipper sliding downward felt as if it were magnified between her breath and his. He pushed her jeans and lace panties down over her thighs. She felt n**ed in more ways than one.
Her discomfort must have showed. “Looks like you need another distraction,” he said and lifted the glass of champagne from the nightstand. He splashed some of the cool bubbly over her, shocking her with the chilled wet liquid.
“What are you—”
She broke off when his warm lips licked the champagne from her chest. Then he moved lower to her br**sts. She bit her lip as her ni**les grew hard and sensations swam to all her erogenous zones. She tried very hard not to arch her back, but her body acted out of its own volition.
“Good,” he muttered against her nipples.
She felt as if her body began to spin. It had been so very long. She shouldn’t let herself go. She hadn’t in such a long time.
His hand slid between her thighs and he found her wet and swollen. Making a growling sound of approval, she felt him move away for several breaths. She began to come back down, but then he pulled her against his n**ed body. The sensation was so delicious and seductive she began to spin again.
“Leo,” she murmured, wrapping her arms and legs around him. She wanted to absorb his strength, his passion, his life.
He swore under his breath. “Oh, damn it. I want inside you,” he said and rolled on top of her. Pushing her thighs apart, he thrust inside her.
She blinked at the sensation, the thick, hard penetration of him.
A strange look crossed his face, and she couldn’t prevent herself from wriggling beneath him.
He moaned and thrust again. The pleasure inside her grew. He began to pump. She clung to him, climbing higher and higher. Close, oh, so close, she was ready to burst free.
He sank inside her one last time, spilling his release in a long ecstasy-filled groan.
She bit her lip, still brimming with arousal, on the edge of a cliff, wanting to soar off of it. Something inside stopped her. Yawning need screamed inside her as deep as a cavern.
Leo rolled off of her, breathing heavily. “You weren’t a virgin,” he said. “You tricked me.” A moment later, he rolled off the bed, grabbed his pants and left the room.
Calista stared after him as she tried to pull her mind and body together. Sexual need still hammered through her, clouding her mind. She felt as if she had no control of her body or mind. He’d taken both.
You tricked me. His words echoed through her mind. She hadn’t thought he would know whether she was a virgin or not. After all, how many times had he had sex with a virgin? Her heart hammered with sudden fear. What if he annulled their marriage? What if, after all this, she still couldn’t take care of her sisters?
Leo sat in the upstairs den with a bottle of scotch and bucket of remorse. His bride, the so-called virgin, had tricked him. What a fool he’d been, not wanting to seduce her lily-white sexual innocence from her. He hadn’t wanted to taint her with his carnal needs in hopes that her purity would somehow cleanse his dirty past.He chuckled with no humor. For a man who’d spent his youth deceiving others, he’d just experienced the biggest heist himself. He tossed back another shot of scotch. What was he going to do with her now?
The sound of a board creaking broke his solitude. He glanced up and saw her, wearing a white silk robe that belied her innocence. Her lips swollen from his kisses, her cheeks white and her eyes full of fear, she met his gaze. A surge of desire rolled through him. Lord, he was a fool.
“I never said I was a virgin,” she said softly.
“You just inferred, suggested and did everything but say it,” he said.
“You’re not going to understand this,” she said, crossing her arms under her chest.
“I can agree with that,” he said, leaning back in his chair. He gave a cynical laugh.
He saw a flash of anger and defiance shoot through her green eyes, but she seemed to make an effort to quell it. She sat down in the chair across from his. “The truth is I had a sexual relationship during my sophomore year in college. It was a mistake. I thought I was in love. I thought he was the one. But he wasn’t.”
“Because he didn’t have enough money?” he asked bitterly.
She narrowed her eyes and took a breath. “No. Because he lied to me and told me he loved me when he was involved with two other girls. That’s when I knew I couldn’t give myself that way again unless there was going to be a long-term commitment.” She took another breath. “Yes, I made a mistake. Maybe you’ve never made a mistake. But if you had, then you’ll know how it feels to want to make a fresh start.”
He brooded over that for several seconds. God knows, he’d made a lot of poor choices. Who was he to hold this against her?
She stood and folded her hands in front of her. “I understand if you want me to leave.”
His gut dipped at the prospect. “I didn’t say that.” He still didn’t like that she’d deceived him. Part of the reason he had married her was he believed she was incapable of deceit. He’d obviously been wrong. A bitter taste filled his mouth. He hadn’t been pure. Why should he expect anything in his life to be pure?
He downed another shot of scotch. “You take my bed for tonight. We’ll discuss this in the morning.”
She met his gaze and turned away. “Yeah, like I’m going to be able to sleep,” she whispered and walked out of the room.
Calista stared up at the ceiling of Leo’s bedroom with the covers wrapped tightly over her chest. This had been a disaster. He was bound to throw her out in the morning. Could she really blame him? He’d held off ha**ng s*x with her because he thought she was a virgin and she’d let him think it.She could kiss her sisters’ future goodbye. She’d obviously mismanaged her charade. Calista wondered what she would do next. Would Leo annul their marriage? She couldn’t believe he would give her a penny now. How horrid of a person was she to be thinking about money at this point?
She didn’t want to think deeper than money, though. She didn’t want to think about whether she’d disappointed him. Or hurt him? Heavens, that had to be a stretch. The man was the personification of deceit. How could she even reach him, let alone hurt him?
Calista closed her eyes and counted backward from a thousand then counted backward again. Sometime during that second thousand, she drifted off.
In her sleeping but dreamless state, she felt the warmth of another body. A strong arm curved around her and drew her closer.
Her heartbeat accelerated. She rose to the surface of her sleep, and a hand slid over her hair, stroking. The touch soothed her and she drifted down again. When had someone stroked her hair? How long had it been? So long she couldn’t remember…. She snuggled against the body that held her and sighed.
Minutes or hours later, she rolled over, encountering a hard chest and strong shoulders. Instinctively, she curled herself around the man and nuzzled her face against his throat.